Radio 4 gets a wrong number

The BBC has received more than 30 calls from bemused listeners after it broadcast a spoof Radio 4 phone-in show late last night.

Down the Line, which aired at 11pm, was billed as Radio 4's first live phone-in show, with listeners invited to call in about issues such as "the war in Iraq, global warming and free speech to free-trade chocolate and fashion in men's underwear".

Featuring "award-winning" DJ Gary Bellamy, the show was promised to be "thought-provoking, controversial, intelligent, well-informed and funny as the average Radio 4 listener".

Listeners were urged to call in on a special number, although any that did were met by a recorded message telling them the lines were busy.

However, the show did not go down well with many listeners, with more than 30 calling the BBC and countless others leaving posts on the Radio 4 message boards.

Some listeners at first thought the show was real. Richard Humphrey said: "I would phone in but I don't want to give the programme the fuel it so desperately is seeking."

But most saw through the spoof. Messager board user Billandgrace said: "It was clear within two minutes of listening to this new programme that it is a spoof (not sure of what). It is just very, very boring. I am flabbergasted at its awfulness! What are they trying to achieve?"

Another message from Mcraw said: "I wondered what station I was listening to when I first turned the radio on. I came back to Radio 4 a few months ago after tiring of the increasingly inane phone-ins on LBC and what I heard tonight is exactly the sort of thing that caused me to tune out of LBC. I realise it's a spoof but I just found it irritating and definitely not funny."

Other listeners praised the show as "refreshing and entertaining" and urged others to stick with it.

Board user Luke_humphry said: "This was a fantastic comedy. I hope you all keep an open mind and give this show another chance."